Author: Bill Hall

Luke 8:3 “and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod’s steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.”

   Joanna apparently spent quit a bit of time with Christ, and was one of the women on hand at the tomb later. Being the wife of Herod’s steward likely meant she was fairly well off monetarily. Susanna we know nothing about, but she was much like either Joanna, or Mary Magdalene. In any case, all of these women, as well as the disciples, cared for Jesus. Jesus was not a rich man, and His daily needs were provided for by His friends.
   Jesus was a carpenter by trade, and He could work and make money. And presumably He did this for many years, even caring for His mother, and possibly His siblings for a time. We do not know exactly what happened to Joseph, but it seems he must have died, leaving Jesus as the caretaker of His family. So, likely anything Jesus had saved up before He began His itinerant ministry was set aside for His family upon His departure.
   Regardless of His economic state, it was appropriate for Him to be supported by others. I say this because those providing for Him were illustrating their faith. Many take offense at this, feeling that ministers are always after money. But, there will always be an obvious difference between ministers who have this motive, and those that do not. It is, sadly, all too easy to tell who is genuine, and who is greedy. The only follower of Christ in Scripture that we find questioning Jesus’ use of money was Judas, and he was a thief and a traitor.

Heavenly Father, I am glad that You ask for monetary involvement in the spreading of the gospel. In Your wisdom You know that we need something to keep us from living life only for our own comfort. Money is a great way to test our true desires. Thank You for Your great love! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 8:2 “and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities– Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons,”

   Mary Magdalene is the first of several women mentioned here. We don’t know a lot about her, but the possession she was delivered from is notable. Unfortunately she is often misrepresented by those who try to guess the rest of her history. Some have even tried to see her as a romantic interest of Christ. However, Mary was a common name at the time and there were likely several women Jesus knew named Mary, including His mother.
   What we can learn is that Jesus was not against women. Many have tried to paint a picture of Christianity based solely upon human actions, not the true nature of the faith. The Bible does not have a negative view of women. On the contrary, the involvement of women in the Bible is quite noteworthy, and somewhat unique in ancient literature.

Heavenly Father, thank You for making Your truth available to everyone, regardless. You don’t discriminate by the color of our skin, our sex, or any other physical characteristic. You have made us different. But, You treat us all fairly. Thank You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 8:1 “Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with Him,”

   Jesus here continues His ministry to the region of Galilee. Notice the message of His preaching. He was bringing good news. That is what the gospel is, good news. His disciples went with Him and learned as they went that the message of the kingdom was a glad message, a good message. Though the truth can lead to negative things, the truth is positive. It is a happy thing.

   Heavenly Father, I want to present to others Your message as it is. I long to be filled with Christ that my imperfection will not stand in the way of the truth. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:50 “Then He said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.”

   These expressions of forgiveness and deliverance form Christ are among the most precious words of Scripture. All who have tasted of the heavenly gift can feel this verse is spoken to them. And the significance of it will stand the test of scrutiny. We may question every nuance for it is in these words that we find our only hope.
   Why did He say what He said? Why did He say it that way? How could He justify making such a statement? What does it fully signify? Indeed, limitless is the number of inquiries we might make, but our awe and wonder in no way diminishes as we think of them. On the contrary we find both strengthened. And why? Because we at once begin to see the answers ever so slightly and we are overwhelmed. It is quite a fact that faith will grow in the heart of the questioner who, truly seeking an honest answer, begins to see the answer and is immediately influenced by it. There are many who will ask questions, but often this is done with a pre-conceived notion, or a pre-accepted axiom. Honest inquiry reveals nothing less than the treasure of the ages.
   Why tell this woman, full of sin as she was, that she was ‘saved’? Why hold out such hope to her? Well, indeed, would there be any actual hope in speaking of Christ at all without it? If He came not to offer ‘salvation’, something altogether unique, then He had (and would even now have) less claim on the world than Caesar. Without a salvation to offer, Jesus is one of many other great persons of history which pass off the scene with sound and fury, signifying nothing. He could woo hearts, and bring them even to insanity, but to win them and bring them to transport He would have no power.
   And why her ‘faith’? Was it indeed not He Who saved her, and He Who saves all? Ah but faith is of God. Even that dear gift was grown out of the infertile ground of a creation that had shunned its Creator. By it Abram was made Abraham, and the rest is, as they say, history. It is by the production of faith inside of humanity that God has worked. To speak of faith saving rather than any other thing is to bring greater glory to the Christ, not less. For faith itself was grown in humans solely for the distinct purpose of spending it upon Jesus. Though it often finds so much else as its object, faith is in its very existence designed for salvation in our Lord Jesus Christ.
   Can we suppose that faith alone might save? But, really think, could anything more than faith be given credit? If you put anything with it you count out Christ, for now you must mix Him and some other word or work on the part of the delivered person. Yes works may provide irrefutable evidence of faith, as James so eloquently points out in his epistle. But, faith is itself intended to be the only means to the end of being perfected by the sacrifice of the Son. The Father has chosen it that we humans may not say ‘Aha!’ and claim to have saved ourselves. No, we must throw up our hands and say it is all of faith with the right object, the Precious Son.
   The significance of the first part is explained by the last. He says to the woman ‘go in peace’. Alas, has man ever had peace? Is peace a real thing? Can anyone claim to know or understand peace? Or do we know just a relative calm or lull in chaos that makes us say ‘peace, peace’ when indeed there is none? Peace with God, with the Father by way of the Son in faith, that is what is in view. Jesus could say to this woman what we long to say to everyone. We want to say, ‘It will be ok.’ But what we mean is that there is peace to be had. But Jesus could actually tell her this was possible. By Him we may actually experience what may genuinely be called peace!

   Heavenly Father, peace, that is the thing, peace! How can I ever get over it? To know peace with You, that is so wonderful! God grant us peace, and make us peacemakers! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:49 “And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, “Who is this who even forgives sins?”

   Simon was very possibly not the only Pharisee present at the time. But even the common people among the Jews would likely be aware of the significance of the idea of forgiving sins. Nowadays we almost think nothing of it. But these folks understood that the forgiving of sins was something set aside for God alone. We generally think of sin as being something we commit against God and others. But, for the Jews, sin was very much between God and the individual alone. For ‘sins’ against others, things are perceived more on a shame system than as sin.

   Heavenly Father, thank You for forgiveness and grace. Your mercy will keep me from hell, and by Your grace I can seek Your face each day and commune with You. It is wonderful! I am so full of joy for the salvation that is in Christ. You are my hope all the day. I can rest safely in You. My soul finds peace in Your Word and spending time with You. I will praise You, I love You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:48 “Then He said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.”

   All of Scripture is inspired. It is all given for our edification. But, sometimes we find ourselves in need of stopping. We need to take a ‘selah’ pause to reflect. We know all is helpful and we rush on and on. And that’s ok, to be familiar with all of Scripture. But, we need also to just stop and think and meditate and pray. We can’t just rush on, we have to breathe in the significance of things. And, at times we find the perfect spot to do that.
   Here in Luke 7:48 we find just such a spot. Jesus looks at the woman and says what every one of us needs so badly to hear, your sins are forgiven. Jesus made it a point time and time again while He was here with us to tell people their sins were forgiven. Yes He did this because He wanted people to know He had that power, that authority. But, beyond this He knows that it is our deepest need. Without forgiveness through Him, nothing else matters.
   Meditate upon this verse. Don’t let it escape you. Mull it over, as the country preacher would say. Let it sink into your soul and find a place to rest and stay. Jesus forgives. That is the most powerful thing you will ever encounter. That is the essence of freedom. We can escape the destruction that sin has brought into this world. What shall be our response? We know we can never pay Him back. We know we can never deserve it. Do we then give up and not try? No! Try and try and try! We can spend our entire lives responding, thanking Him, loving Him, praising His Name. This is what it is all about, we love Him because He first loved us.

   Heavenly Father, thank You for forgiveness in Christ! There is nothing so amazing as Your plan of redemption. You are wise beyond all that I can ever understand. Never can I ever reach to the bottom of ‘your sins are forgiven’, or know the utmost of what I might do to respond. But I know You have given me by Christ the ability to praise You for all of eternity future. And I will, I will. Thank You, all praise to You! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:47 “”Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much. But to whom little is forgiven, the same loves little.”

   We are not told here the response of Simon to this. To be sure it gave him a lot to think about. But, it probably also gave him more reason to suspect Christ. As a Jewish teacher, Simon would understand that only God can forgive sins. So, for Jesus to make this statement about the woman, Jesus would have to be making Himself equal with God.
   Jesus does not gloss over the greatness of this woman’s sin. But be very careful to see what He does say. Her sins, which are many, are forgiven. And why? Because she loved much. In other words, the woman understood there was much against her. She had a mountain of sin to be forgiven. So the one ‘to whom little is forgiven’ is not necessarily any less of a sinner. But they are forgiven far less for they have little sensitivity to their unworthiness before a Holy God.
   This is not the only time that Jesus taught this concept. He always called the religious leaders to repent of their own sins before they began to judge others. The problem was not that Simon recognized the very sinful state of this woman. The problem was that he took little to no notice of his own sins. His estimation of the woman’s great sinfulness was very correct. But, he was totally blind to his own horrible condition.

   Heavenly Father, I want to love You very, very much. I want to have a sense of what You have done for me in Christ. Sin is a heavy load that I don’t have to bear! Praise the Lord! You are Awesome, Wonderful, Powerful, Gracious, Loving, Holy, Just, and So Good! I can never stop praising You. I understand Your great holiness more and more all the time. Thank You for being You! You are my song all the day. You alone are worthy. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:46 “”You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil.”

   The the anointing of Jesus’ head was not necessarily a societal expectation. And He was not complaining. Jesus is here simply highlighting the difference in the response of the woman to Him, and that of Simon the Pharisee. As a Pharisee, Simon would immediately understand what Jesus was getting across here. He knew more of the Scriptures than the woman would have. And yet, his knowledge served to condemn his unbelief.
   I have met and heard of many people who feel themselves slighted because Jesus only was here on earth for a short time. They feel that if they could have met Him in person their outlook would be altogether different. I suggest that such persons are not too different from Simon. Instead of accepting the testimony of the prophets, the miracles, and even what he might have discovered by plain conversation with Jesus, Simon had a preconceived notion of the nature of this Man that others called Christ. In the same way, those who think themselves cheated by not seeing Him in the flesh are also unwilling to accept what they have been told about Him, and in its place harbor their own idea of Who and What they believe He is. They would be, I think, very probable to find His nature not to their liking.

   Heavenly Father, may I never forget that I see the face of Christ every day. Or at least, that I have the opportunity if I will but take it. I can see His hands and feet at work, and hear His words. Oh You have blessed us in Him! How can I ever grasp the amazing depths of the mysteries of Christ? He is my joy, He is the delight of my innermost soul. How can we know Him more? And yet that is all we will ever do, know Him more and more! In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:45 “You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in.”

   So again we must compare this to the customs and societal norms throughout history. This woman’s kisses are here described with a word that is derived from the other word in the verse used to describe kisses given by men to other men. And, in other contexts that exact word is used in the same way. Further, Jesus is pointing out that Simon didn’t give Him a kiss. Although there are those who want to see sexual overtones everywhere, that simply is not being faithful to the text. This type of kissing was affectionate, yes, but romantic or erotic, no. The woman was kissing Jesus as if he were a familiar friend. And, given the context, she and Jesus both considered her actions to be worship.
   Again, Simon was not necessarily questioning the propriety of her actions. His focus was on what he perceived as Jesus’ lack of knowledge. He was operating, as the majority of humanity has throughout history, under the impression that there are those who are to be considered untouchable for one reason or another.

   Heavenly Father, Your wisdom is too wonderful for me! I find so many things that are difficult to understand or accept. But, I remember that as we are we are broken. We need Your truth and grace and love. We need Your holiness in our lives. Thank You for revealing Yourself to us. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.

Luke 7:44 “Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head.”

     Jesus wasn’t being whiny. Simon’s neglect in his lack of preparation for foot washing was not necessarily an intentional oversight. But, if he had been especially interested in making a good impression, or in making his love known, he would have provided at least water for Jesus’ feet.
   As it is, Simon was not that concerned with impressing the Lord, nor was his love that lavish. The woman, on the other hand, specifically came to show her love for the Lord Jesus.
   By the way, remembering the lifestyle of this woman we might wonder if there was anything inappropriate about her touching Jesus in this way. Even Simon wasn’t suggesting that. Simon didn’t think the woman was propositioning Jesus, or flirting with Him. He understood, as we must, that washing a person’s feet was not seen in that way in that time. It was an acceptable form of service, kind of like shinning someone’s shoes. It was a humble act of kindness, yes, but it was not inappropriate. Simon suggested an issue simply because of the character of the woman, not because of the action she had chosen. Had he felt anything overtly inappropriate was going on, he would have expelled the woman, and possibly Jesus.
   It is also interesting to note that Jesus specifically mentions her tears. We are not told much about this woman, or why she did what she did. But, the response of Christ seems to indicate her tears were due to sorrow unto repentance because He also forgives her. Apparently this was her way of reconciling to the Lord. It is possible that she was also making known her intention to give up her past life. The fragrant oil she was using may very well have been a valuable tool of her trade, and using it up on Jesus’ feet might symbolically be akin to the drunkard pouring the booze down the sink, though to better use.

   Heavenly Father, love is what You deserve! Yet my love is so imperfect. I feel it. I know it. I must rely on You even for that. Even for the love with which to show You my appreciation I am completely dependent upon You. As the woman who washed the feet of the Master, I cannot offer much. But, with Your help, and by the Spirit and Christ in me, I will offer You my future. Each day lived for Your glory is a small token of my genuine love for You. I love You and thank You for allowing me to be and to know You for another day. In the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.